


Burden of Truth

by Tziput13



Category: Star vs. The Forces Of Evil
Genre: Family, Family Feels, Family Issues, Family Reunions, Gen, One Shot, Revelations
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-02
Updated: 2021-02-02
Packaged: 2021-03-13 18:08:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,675
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29157909
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tziput13/pseuds/Tziput13
Summary: As the Queen of Mewni, Festivia knows she has a duty to pay visit to the allies of the kingdom to preserve their relations. The trip to the Spiderbite kingdom should have been no different, but when an oddity comes up, she decides that she doesn't want to be lied to anymore.
Relationships: Crescenta Butterfly & Festivia Butterfly, Dirhhennia Butterfly & Festivia Butterfly, Festivia Butterfly & Recluza Spiderbite
Comments: 5
Kudos: 5





	Burden of Truth

**Author's Note:**

> While I wrote this story primarily as a stand-alone, it does reference quite directly events that took place in a one-shot I wrote in the past. In case you want further context before or after reading this one (when and whether you do that is up to you, really), check out the SvtFoE story 'Fracture' in my profile.
> 
> 6th February 2021: Title was changed from the original, which felt arguably less natural. Sorry, sometimes I still can't English as well as I'd like.

"Sooo… is this realm of the Spiderbites, mother?"

"Yes, Crescenta," Festivia pointed to the scenery that they could see beyond the window of their carriage. "I know that the Forest of Unlikely Spiderbites may feel like a boring place where everything is the same everywhere, but if you pay attention, I'm sure you can actually notice some landmarks and learn to recognize the place!"

Crescenta had her eyes fixed on the series of trees and rare spiderwebs that were typical of the forest. "I can't see any, mother. What can I look for?"

"Well, for starters… try to see if there are any oddities, any, uh… skips in the apparently same-y scenery."

"I'll try as hard as I can! Thank you, mother!" and with that, Crescenta continued to observe the moving trees. Not even the carriage stumbling on an uneven rock deterred her as she leaned over the window… which was expected, really.

Festivia knew that her daughter had grown a certain tendency to stick to her current goal no matter what while also giving herself new goals to achieve all the time—often requesting her mother to give them to her if she couldn't come up with some by herself. It wasn't thus a surprise that Crescenta had never appreciated that much the parties her mother still sometimes threw for the happiness of her people—even at her young age, the little girl had far more interest in discovering things around her than to spend time 'fooling around', as she herself had stated.

She probably could've passed for a peculiar, if not energetic kid, but her behaviour stood out particularly when compared to Festivia's firstborn. The fact was, the two were indeed very different… and even then, Dirhhennia was orders of magnitude less willing than her sister to take part in any festivities, even if for different reasons. Or any public activity. Or… _anything,_ really.

Even now, while they were travelling together, Dirhhennia sat opposite of her, at the very corner of the stagecoach—the farthest away from Crescenta. With a scowl on her face, Dirhhennia looked incredibly bored and annoyed at the same time.

"Dirhhennia?" Festivia tried to start a conversation while her youngest was distracted. Even for Dirhhennia's 'remarkable' social skills, not talking for an hour straight was weird. Especially with Crescenta being as talkative as always right by her side. She would at least try to throw out a dry remark to silence her for a few seconds.

"What?" Dirhhennia gave a very unimpressed look to her mother. "Can't you see I'm dying of happiness here?"

"Come on, sweetie. Aren't you interested, even just a tiny little bit? We're going to visit our relatives, the Spiderbites! We haven't met most of them for ages… actually, I don't think you and your sister ever did. I'm sure you can get to know someone who shares your own interests there!"

"I doubt anyone will be worth my time… more than Chad, that is," Dirhhennia commented without a trace of amusement. She raised the hand that was hidden behind her hair the entire time, revealing the precious object she was holding—the wand. The 8-ball exterior mocking Festivia as it always did. "And you can't tell me who to meet or know, mom."

"Yes…" Festivia agreed patiently. "But you could at least try it out, get to know some new faces! Even I get to make a few new acquaintances today, as it's been a long time since my last visit!"

"Yeah, Dir!" Crescenta suddenly interjected, turning around with a jerk and crawling up to Dirhhennia, who promptly tried to fuse with the chair of the carriage—clinging harder to the wand. "We're going to meet lots of new people! Aren't you excited!?"

"No," Dirhhennia's answer came as short as it was final. "Now leave me alone."

Festivia saw something worrying, when Crescenta's eyes twitched for a moment. But then, the overactive girl simply scoffed, as if she wasn't offended at all by her elder sister's remark. "Hah, classic Dirhhennia. Good thing there's at least one family member in the family caring about keeping the relations high and healthy!"

After saying that, Crescenta gave a glance to her mother with a big smile. Festivia smiled back, content with her child's reaction, before turning back to Dirhhennia—and not noticing how Crescenta's expression grew gloomy and upset at the lack of a proper reply.

"At least… tell me you'll try to keep some decency around the Spiderbites, Dirhhennia. We ought to let them know we're their friends."

"They'll do that once you throw a party in their honour. It always works that way," Dirhhennia turned her glare to the window, which was body language for 'this conversation has ended'. Festivia had learned to recognise that with time.

"I guess it does…" Festivia muttered sadly, as she sat back. She moved her eyes a little to check on Crescenta, who had returned to her previous vigil of the road, hiding her face from view.

…this was not going too well now, wasn't it?

Festivia wasn't stupid. She had seen right away that there was something not working quite well in her two daughters' relationship. When she had Crescenta, Festivia had at first thought that the new girl would've helped Dirhhennia to at least see a little more excitement in her life and keep in check her tendency to the 'dark', where dark thankfully was not dark magic, but was more on the lines of 'rebellious phase of younghood starting too early and never seeming to end'.

Instead, as Crescenta grew up, she had noticed that Dirhhennia had grown more restless and evasive than she already was. Spending a lot of time doing absolutely nothing, refusing to write down actual useful notes in the Book of Spells, passing the day loitering with her friend Chad… her having a friend was a bonus, but she hadn't realised yet that she had somehow found a boy who felt just like her about how life was supposed to be lived.

And Crescenta… always with a smile on her face, always excited to discover new things… always asking her sister to lend her the wand to 'make some practice and help her with her magic'. She thought that it would prove to be a good bonding experience for the two—instead, Dirhhennia had become quite protective of the object.

Festivia… wasn't sure what to do with her daughters at this point. She was used to be the source of entertainment in large parties with hundreds of participants, bringing smiles to people even in the middle of war. But apparently, doing the same with her own family was out of her league. And Glossaryck wasn't helping… for some reason, he felt like Dirhhennia was fine as she was? What in the world did he even mean with that? Things were not fine if they kept going this way!

According to what she read in the book of spells when she was younger, he wasn't always as cooperative with all queens. But he'd helped raise her when she was little, and he was always willing to listen to her back then. Why the sudden change now?

Sighing, she let herself sprawl the chair of the carriage, giving a glance out to the same window Dirhhennia was sulking over. _'Maybe someone at the Spiderbites has had similar family issues? I really would like some good advice right now… Maybe I could—'_

A head covered in a full helmet suddenly appeared on the window. Both Festivia and Dirhhennia let out a yelp, so focused they were in their own thoughts.

Crescenta gave out a light chuckle, then promptly rushed to the window, facing the knight. "Any news?! Are we close?"

"Uhh… yes. Forgive my interruption, my queen, and princesses. I thought it wise to warn you before we entered the Spiderbite castle town. We should be inside the square of their stronghold in less than a quarter of an hour."

"You thought well, Edward," Festivia said with a grin once she managed to recompose herself. "I was wondering when this voyage was going to end and whether to regret my decision not to use scissors… but hey, now we're here. We'll get ready, you handle the baggage!"

"At once, my queen!"

* * *

As expected, the Spiderbites proved to be very cordial with Festivia, her daughters and the small entourage that had followed her to the Spiderbite capital. And Festivia had happily reciprocated their welcome, since she was always open to new friendships. In her eyes, there was no reason to be wary of the people that she was even related to.

In fact, things were looking up. Considering the hour, the Spiderbite King had offered Festivia the option to actually let her family and the other Mewman guests join him and the other Spiderbites in a regal lunch. He would've talked long about the prowess of the royal Spiderbite kitchen and local recipes if it wasn't for Festivia gladly accepting the offer before he could even start, going as far as slapping the man's shoulder with a big smile. The guy seemed taken aback at first, but otherwise kept his manners in front of the queen and led her, Dirhhennia and Crescenta to the lunch room while the various guests took their seats.

There were at least 50 or so members of the Spiderbite family and related family groups right now, which impressed Festivia since she didn't expect that many people. "We've made sure that most of the Spiderbite family, even some far relatives, were present today for you, Queen Festivia," the King explained. "It would've stupid of us to miss on this opportunity to pay homage to the queen of Mewni that led us through hard times once again!"

"Heh, that's a bit uncalled for really. It was mostly Mina that did the fighting back then," Festivia sheepishly specified while she and her daughters followed the King.

"Nonsense. It was still you that held the kingdom in one piece and kept our enemies' attention away from the undefended kingdoms. We owe you."

He gestured towards a trio of seats side by side, placed at the centre of a long table. "But I don't want to press the matter now. Please have a seat, queen, and princesses," he said while bowing. "I'll have to make a proper introduction once you've settled down."

Festivia thanked him and got down on the table along with Dirhhennia on her right and Crescenta on her left. She glanced around herself, mentally memorizing the various faces that were nearby and trying to see if she could remember anyone since her last visit, but her thoughts were interrupted by the Spiderbite King, who was seated in the table at the centre of the room. He stood with a glass in his hand.

"Friends, and family! We are reunited here today to celebrate our long-lived alliance with the Butterfly kingdom. After the… horrors we all had had to endure in the past wars, I personally believe it would be shameful for me to not celebrate the new era of peace that has befallen on Mewni. So, I ask you all to raise your glasses and say with me, to the Butterflies! To a long and worthwhile relationship! And to an end of the monster threat!"

"To the Butterflies!" the Spiderbite family members reunited in the room chorused as they all stood up.

Festivia, ever so used to being at the centre of the attention, simply smiled as she raised her own glass and stood up to join them. Though she missed her goblet wand, she still enjoyed the mere act. "Thank you, thank you all my friends for this warm welcome!"

"Perhaps the Butterfly queen will grace us with one of her infamous parties?" one of the Spiderbites sitting not that far from Festivia said. Some of the people present agreed vocally with his question, apparently looking forward to whatever Festivia had in store for them.

Too bad she was going to disappoint them… a little. "Actually…" she shyly admitted, "I don't have anything prepared for today. I thought that it would be better to get to know you all face by face, and besides… my daughters would probably need their own time to adjust. Isn't that right, dears?"

"I'm looking forward to meet all of you!" Crescenta eagerly shouted, sitting up on her chair to get a better view. She even raised her own glass, despite it being empty.

"Crescenta. Manners."

"Oh… sorry," Crescenta dejectedly fell back to the chair. Which prompted Festivia's other daughter to take the initiative, as she stood up from her seat on the right of her mother.

"I guess I'll meet some of you as well," she managed to let out with a deadpan tone. "I can't wait."

Festivia immediately detected that her daughters hadn't exactly made the best impression, so she quickly took the lead. "Thank you girls. Now, let's sit down and dig in everyone, shall we?"

The Queen let some time pass as the first courses of the meal arrived and the Spiderbites became immersed in their own chat. After some time, she decided she needed to address her elder daughter's behaviour.

"Dirhhennia."

"What, mom?"

"What do you mean, 'what'? Can't you at least guess why I'm addressing you right now?"

"You can make me meet people if it's because of my future as a queen," Dirhhennia put her fork into the regal food in front of her, though she did that like she was touching a disgusting piece of garbage. She had already vocally pronounced her displeasure concerning the Spiderbite cuisine earlier. "But you can't make me to do it in the way you want."

"Dir, you can't… I mean, you still have some etiquette you have to take into account. Even if most people here don't look particularly compatible with you given your… interests. Try to be cordial!"

Dirhhennia sighed. She eyed the 8-ball wand that was on the table for a moment, then looked among the various tables and the guests who had come to meet the current reigning family. "Well… maybe there's gotta be at least a guy who's like Chad. To live in this black hole of a place requires a certain sensibility… I can respect that."

Festivia gaped.

"Y-you mean you like it here?"

"Don't put thoughts in my mind that I didn't think, mom. It is just… interesting," Dirhhennia admitted. "The Forest of Unlikely Spiderbites is no match for the Uncertain Death woods we got at home, but still… it provides safety from the sun. Refuge from noisy people who want to irritate you. And peace to think about… things?"

"You mean something to write in your 'balls', again?" Crescenta was leaning over the table to get a look on her sister. "Bah! You're always wasting your time with those things, Dir. You gotta actually meet these people, talk with them! Learn what they like and what they don't like! That's how you'll become a good queen!"

"It doesn't matter," Dirhhennia replied, glaring at the little girl. "They only have to like what I like, because I'll be their queen. That's how it works."

"No, it doesn't!"

"Think however you can. Not like you'll be the one being a queen, right?"

"Girls!" Festivia raised her voice. A few glances were directed at her from the nearby people, so she tried to solve the quarrel quickly. "Come on, girls. This is not the time for arguing. Let's just… enjoy the meal for now, all right?"

Dirhhennia simply nodded, but Crescenta was much less discreet, gritting her teeth and whispering something that Festivia didn't catch as she turned her attention back to her plate.

There was some kind of resentment growing inside Crescenta towards her sister. Festivia hadn't quite gotten what was wrong, but Crescenta had always had certain 'mood swings' when she was around Dirhhennia, despite assuring her more than one time that she 'wanted to keep a perfectly good relationship with her sister'.

She probably would've needed to have a heart-to-heart talk with her alone, if she wanted to get something out of it. But then again… how was she supposed to tackle that?

"Soo… Festivia!" the woman who sat in front of her said. It was one slightly older than her, with a very picturesque hair style that was similar to an actual spider. "Forgive me for the question, but… I hope that things are going well back in the Mewman capital."

Festivia shook her head, gladly taking the distraction. "Oh, yes, of course! Since the war ended, I think we've managed to recover from our losses for the most part. I'll tell you, after non-stop partying for so long, I think I appreciated a little peace and calm." She winked. "Not that it would stop me from throwing a little party here and there."

The woman laughed heartily. "You really are worthy of your fame, Queen Festivia. Even if we were separated, I think I speak for everyone in this room when I say that Mewni was lucky to have you."

"Oh, you're making me blush now!" Festivia smiled.

"She means it," an old man beside the woman added, a guy donning an impressive beard and one of the Spiderbites in the room that was true to the family name, considering the reddish lumps on his bald head. His eyes were weary and much more serious looking.

"I'd go as far as adding, that it was a tragedy that your mother was nothing like you."

That suddenly caused Festivia to freeze for a moment. "My… mother?"

In the heat of the moment, she had momentarily forgotten about the fact that yes, the Spiderbites were strangers for the most part. But one of them had been her father as well.

"Did you know her?" Festivia couldn't help asking. She didn't even notice Crescenta leaning on the table once again, this time to listen attentively.

"Oh, no, thank corn no!" the old man quickly corrected her. "I think I am better left living without the image of that demon woman haunting my dreams."

"Now, dear… there's no reason to bother the queen with memories she would rather not remember," the woman tried to say.

"No, no," Festivia reassured her. "I'm… curious. I just want to know your… husband, right? Your husband's opinion."

Her information about Eclipsa and Shastacan had always come from the Magic High Commission, and the pictures she'd taken from their accounts had always roughly stayed the same over the years, even after she was queen. Eclipsa, who had fallen in love with a monster and had abandoned Mewni and her father, Shastacan for it. A love that had proved lethal when both of them were killed by that monster.

It was a grim memory, but Festivia had always strived to be a good queen regardless of her family history, ignoring it as far as she could if need be. She had managed to keep her people in check, entertain them during the war and even pay attention to her two beautiful daughters… well, even if she was having a little bit of trouble reining the two of them in.

But she now realized that she could finally have new accounts of what happened to them, that didn't come from Auntie Hekapoo and her Uncles.

"There's not much I can tell you, my queen," the old man continued, "but I can tell you, we were not happy with what your mother did. Leaving in the middle of a looming new conflict with the monsters was one thing, but doing that to go with one of them? And one of their warlords, if that wasn't enough?!"

He narrowed his eyes, growling under his breath. "It is no surprise that she got killed. For the little I remember, Shastacan was never the brightest tool in the shed, but he didn't deserve to lose his life as well due to her madness."

Festivia nodded, looking quite downcast. But before the woman could try to cheer her up, the man started speaking again.

"I realize these may not be the heart-warming stories you'd usually expect about your long lost mother. But it is the truth, queen. Eclipsa betrayed us and betrayed her kingdom. And you deserve to know that she was never someone to look up to."

"I guess…"

Then, there were more people adding their own opinions all of a sudden. Apparently, the old man's words had gained the attention of the nearby dining guests, and the subject of discussion spread like a plague.

"Eclipsa was a traitor of her people. Festivia, don't feel bad for never knowing a mother who hardly loved you!"

"The wench killed my cousin. She doesn't deserve to be remembered as anything more of the Dark Queen she used to be, and if it were for me, her name should be publicly shamed for what she did."

"I knew that the weeding was never going to end well. Without Solaria keeping her under check, it was only a matter of time. I visited Butterfly Castle back then, you know! I saw her that once, and even as a child she looked nothing but suspicious!"

Suddenly, Eclipsa the Queen of Darkness had become the main subject of discussion in the entire chamber, and Festivia didn't know what to say or do. Every Spiderbite in the room was basically throwing out more and more reasons for people to hate on Eclipsa.

Crescenta had her eyes jumping from one face to the other, listening attentively to whatever they were saying, while Dirhhennia idly prodded at her food, apparently not as interested. Festivia was somewhat bothered by how Crescenta looked like she was taking the facts from the Spiderbites as they were, even if some of them were sounding more and more far-fetched the more people added their two cents. But before she could say anything, there was a shattering noise of glass crumbling into a million pieces.

The room silenced itself, and when Festivia looked in the direction of the noise, she saw there was a person standing up among the tables. She couldn't tell much for the distance, but the person looked like a quite old woman.

"You're wrong. You're all wrong!" the person shouted, her voice raspy. Immediately, Festivia knew there was something different in her compared to the other Spiderbites. Her way of clothing, the fact that she seemed… out of place.

The vehemence of her voice.

"Eclipsa was never evil. You're all spewing lies on her memory!"

"You dare doubt that was she did was evil?! She killed Shastacan Spiderbite!"

"She didn't kill him, Globgor did!" the woman rebutted. "Eclipsa would've never left for him if she knew what that creature—"

"Don't you _dare_ say aloud the name of that abomination in this room!"

The old woman wasn't deterred. "It doesn't change what happened. And what you're doing right now is doing exactly that, it's changing reality. You're building a vision of her that is the exact opposite of the Eclipsa I knew."

"There is no hidden truth, _Recluza,"_ it was King Spiderbite who was talking now, standing up from his own seat to regard her. "We aren't just 'saying' that Eclipsa was evil. She _committed_ evil acts, like leaving Mewni when the kingdom needed her the most and 'falling in love' with… a _thing_ that showed its true colours in time. She caused Shastacan to die, and she left Festivia to grow up alone, without a proper family to call as such."

"Eclipsa felt _betrayed_ by Mewni herself, you idiots! She was alone and in love, and she saw nothing but judgement and punishment when she thought about what would've happened if her relationship was revealed to the public while she was in the castle. Solaria _forced_ her into her marriage with Shastacan! Can't you at least imagine how she could've felt in that situation?"

"You tell me to imagine how it feels to love a _monster?_ Disgusting! Eclipsa just wasn't good enough to pay heed to her marriage, that's all."

Recluza opened her mouth to speak again, but she was interrupted by King Spiderbite again.

"I think we've heard enough, Recluza. Sit down now."

The tone of the King was final, and after he spoke, the Spiderbites in the room fell in silence. The only noise was from the whispers of the Mewman guests from Festivia's retinue.

But Recluza wasn't done.

"No. No, I'm done doing nothing while you people tarnish the name of my niece!"

"Recluza, come on, sit," another woman beside Recluza put a hand on her shoulder. "I know that it's hard to think so, but we're not saying anything about Jushtin, he's got no role in the evil she did. It was not his fault that he was born a brother to that—"

Recluza pushed the woman away. "Don't touch me, and if you say again the name of my husband, I'll _cut your throat_ here and now!"

"That is enough! Guards!"

It happened so fast that one would've been left impressed by the responsiveness of the Spiderbite warriors that were standing guard in the nearby hallways. But Festivia didn't care about it, her attention fully caught by the squirming, kicking woman while she was being pulled away. Despite her age, she didn't stop shouting.

"Let me go! Let me go!" she yelled, but the soldiers were simply too strong for her to rebel. "You're wrong, you're _all_ wrong. Eclipsa doesn't deserve all these lies! You didn't know her as me and Jushtin did! None of you did! NO ONE!"

Her cries were muffled by the double doors slamming shut in front of her, and the chamber was once again silent.

The Spiderbite patriarch let out a long breath, then turned towards Festivia. "My queen. You have the excuses of all of the Spiderbite family for this… spectacle that you had to endure. The… mad woman here will soon be invited to return back to her home, and she won't be a bother to you or your daughters anymore. I hope you'll accept my sincere apologies."

Festivia smiled. "Of course, you don't have to worry about it. I've seen my fair share of people losing it in my time, King Spiderbite. This is no new thing for me."

Her smile wasn't true to her feelings, but she had learned to fake her emotions, since revealing them was seldom an option during her reign. What Recluza had said had caught her attention more than anything the rest of the Spiderbite family had said concerning her late mother.

When she looked at her daughters, she saw that Crescenta and even Dirhhennia were both looking at the door through which Recluza had left.

"Mother," Crescenta turned her eyes to Festivia. "I didn't know that Great-Great-Aunt Recluza was going to be here as well. I thought that… that she wouldn't be here…?"

Festivia knew what Crescenta meant. She had taught both of her daughters about the Mewman queens that came before them, at least as far as she knew and based on the information she got from the Magic High Commission and the book of spells. She knew that Jushtin had unfortunately passed away during the war that occurred during her reign, when she was still a young teenager caught in a conflict she knew little about.

It was one of the few things she regretted, not meeting her uncle before things went awry. What happened to Eclipsa was bad… but Jushtin was alive by the time she was a little kid, she was aware of that. Meeting someone that was truly part of her family… it would've helped for sure. But back then things were simpler, with the Commission helping her out and supporting her and even helping her take decisions. Now, things were more complicated…

Considering that the Spiderbites had turned out to be not that different from the other noble families… it would've been a nice change of pace to get to meet him at least. But he was gone.

And, in her naivety, she had thought that Recluza had passed away as well… since people seemed to forget about her existence every time she'd asked about her in the past years. But that evidently wasn't true.

"I didn't know that either, sweetie," Festivia put a hand over her daughter's head, caressing her hair. "Are you all right?"

"I'm a-okay, mother!" Crescenta puffed her cheeks and straightened her back proudly. Then, her face became thoughtful again. "I just… wonder about Aunt Recluza. She looked… sad."

"Yes, she did…" Festivia glanced around herself. No one of the Spiderbites was paying any attention to her right now.

"You know what? I think we should pay her a visit."

* * *

"Come on, Dirhhennia, cheer up. I really don't want to see you mope around while we visit Aunt Recluza!"

"Even if you can make me stick around, you can't force me to actually enjoy it, mom," Dirhhennia hissed.

Festivia sighed. "At least give her a chance. I think it would give her a bit of fresh air to talk with us, after what happened at lunch."

Dirhhennia simply stared forward. Festivia didn't doubt that she was rolling her eyes, doubt she couldn't see her face behind her air. "I'll see what I can do…"

' _Why are you being like this, Dir…?'_ Festivia felt like she had been a bit helpless in keeping the rebellious instincts of Dirhhennia in check. Perhaps… she could ask her Great-Aunt for advice as well.

But truth be told, what could she expect from her? She had never met her before in her life, she thought she was dead! And the first impression Recluza had given wasn't exactly one she'd call positive—even if she wasn't involved directly in the quarrel.

Crescenta looked much more willing to join Festivia when she pulled her and Dirhhennia into this visit. By now she was continuously rushing forward and then running back to them, her eyes wide with interest and excitement. "I have so many questions!"

"I'm sure she would love to give you all the answers you want, Crescenta. But be mindful, still!" Festivia reminded her. "She's got her age and we don't know exactly what happened to her in the last few years. Got that?"

"Yes mother. Uncle Jushtin is gone. I'll keep that in mind."

The fact that she had just uttered that while smiling was a bit… irksome.

However, she couldn't ponder over that any further as the three of them finally reached the door that, according to the information she'd requested from the Spiderbite guardsmen, was the current guest room of Recluza.

Festivia took in a breath, then knocked lightly. "Recluza Spiderbite? Are you in there?"

There was no answer at first. Crescenta and Dirhhennia both looked at Festivia with interrogative gazes.

"Recluza… I'm sorry for what happened today. It just… didn't occur to me that it was you. We, er… never had the chance to acquaint with each other. Would you like to correct that right now?"

She gestured to her daughters to approach her. Crescenta basically rammed into her side, while Dirhhennia trudged, taking her time. She still put both of her arms around their shoulders. "Crescenta and Dirhhennia would love to meet you."

There were steps coming from behind the door.

"F-Festiva? Is that you?"

"Oh my! I didn't even introduce myself! Sorry about that, I didn't—"

The door opened abruptly and there stood Recluza Spiderbite, looking at the three of them as if they were anomalies in the space-time continuum.

"…hi?" Crescenta wasn't able to stay quiet for more than two seconds.

Recluza blinked, then her demeanour suddenly shifted. "Crescenta, Dirhhennia! Please, come in, come in, dearies!"

Crescenta unceremoniously ran into the room. "Crescenta, manners!"

Crescenta immediately froze in the centre of the room, regretting her decision, but Recluza simply made a dismissing gesture. "Oh, I don't mind. I may have my years, but I can handle a bit of a reckless kid… aren't you?"

Crescenta blushed. "No, no, I'm not! I'm perfectly fine, aunt Recluza! I'm very well behaved!"

"Just the perfect picture of a princess…" Dirhhennia grumbled. Which prompted Recluza to turn towards her. Gently, Festivia pushed her forward.

"Now, don't be shy, dear. I think I know your type… you people are always somehow able to see things more talkative people can't grasp."

Dirhhennia's eyes lit up. "You think so?"

"Of course. Frankly, that reminds me of my niece in a way… Actually, the niece who also was your grandmother!"

"Eclipsa?" Crescenta appeared interested, and Recluza didn't waste time in answering her. She simply glanced at Festivia for a moment, and when she saw that the Butterfly Queen didn't have any sign of uneasiness over the mention of the name, proceeded to reply.

Festivia was more concerned in listening herself to what she had to say, really.

"Yes, of course. In fact, you two remind me both of her! Eclipsa was a bit like you," she said while looking at Crescenta, "because she was always a bit of an independent kid, sometimes getting in trouble because she was where she wasn't supposed to be, but always so willing to meet new people and know about the world. But sometimes, she enjoyed solitude, and being in the hiding… which I guess is something your sister here also enjoys."

Dirhhennia looked quite impressed. "I didn't know grandma was like this…"

"Oh, few people knew about her when she was young," Recluza explained. "Even I had rarely the chance to meet her over the years, to my regret. She… Well, let's just say that it was a time of war, even back then, and the chance to meet were few and far between."

She let out a sigh, then glanced at Festivia. "But I don't want to stress you up with the ramblings of an old stag. Come on, Festivia. I think they got a couple of chairs or stools or whatever somewhere in this room."

Festivia smiled and entered the room. She immediately noticed that the room was very much neutral looking, like a spartan guest room, something she'd expect from the Johansen or even the Lucitors, not the Spiderbites who had a reputation for being quite elegant and even vain to a point—according to what she'd heard.

Recluza guided Dirhhennia and Crescenta to let them sit on her bed, while Festivia got the two stools she'd mentioned. Recluza then bended down to go through something in her drawer. The drawer of the cupboard beside the bed and a single wardrobe where the only pieces of furniture present in the room, in fact. Bed, cupboard, wardrobe and a single window, with a couple of old rugs for the floor. There were also a couple of suitcases opened on the floor as well.

"Forgive me for the mess! I was trying to get my things in check since I believe I may have to depart soon," Recluza said as she kept fiddling with whatever she was looking for.

Festivia opened her mouth to reply when Recluza suddenly jerked up, putting her hands on her back. "Oh!"

The Queen quickly walked up to her, abandoning the stools. "Are you fine, Recluza? Do you need any help?"

"Eh, don't worry, dear. The years keep getting up to me, but I'll be fine. I just need to get one thing here…"

"Let me help you," Festivia insisted. "I don't want to see you get more exert than needed."

Recluza looked thoughtfully at her for a few moments, then groaned. "Oh, all right. There's an album in there, a collection of drawings and pictures. You should recognize it once you see it."

Festiva got her hands into the drawer and started skimming through it. "Why would you say that—"

She immediately recognized the four-leafed clover symbol.

"When he was young, Jushtin started commissioning people left and right to take pictures or make drawings and portraits. He was a bit of a party guy like you, Festivia," she said with a smile, "though he was more of a nightlife lover. Eventually… well, thankfully," she let out a chuckle, "he lost the habit, but he kept the custom of putting down pics of his life, and it eventually turned into the family album you have there."

Festivia opened the album and was greeted by an image of a teenage Jushtin Butterfly in an impressive pose, sporting his Cocodrile Cane Wand. Under the image she could read 'the bossuz is ready to get back into town, boyz and galz'.

"I always asked him why he didn't just tear off the starting pages. He always told me that he was never going to be embarrassed to what was essentially him—but it sure embarrasses me," she grumbled.

Festivia couldn't help laughing a little at the thought of what young Jushtin was up to back then. She had started setting parties up for her people at a very young age, so she guessed that Jushtin was also a quick evening hangout master.

"In any case, I thought it would be a nice way to give your daughters something to look through, since they never had the chance to know him, or even their grandma."

"I… think that's a great idea!" Festivia offered the album to the two of them. As expected, Dirhhennia didn't move a finger, while Crescenta basically snatched it away and started to devour the contents as she went fast through the pages.

At least, she could see Dirhhennia stealing glances of the album here and there, so she wasn't a desperate case and had _some_ interest.

"It's… good that you have something like that, Recluza…" Festivia said. She and Recluza sat down while she talked. "I never had much to recount what my mother… and her family were like. The tapestries of the grandma room are kind of… exaggerating things, I think."

Recluza became more serious as she regarded her. "And what about the things you've been told? I mean… surely, people have told you a lot about them, didn't they?"

"They did, but…" Festivia sighed. "At first, the High Commission didn't say much, they just told me that mom and dad were gone and I had to keep going for their sake. But when I told them I wanted to know more, when I was older, they explained that mom was bad and actually was the reason why she and dad were gone in the first place, and why Mewni was in such a problematic moment. I was young back then, and I didn't know what to think of it really… I just, went along with the events, I guess."

"So… you never truly believed what they told you…?" Recluza's gaze was almost analytical as she observed her.

"I believed them," Festivia specified. She entwined her fingers as she grew pensive. "I… I simply didn't think they were telling me the full story. It was a bit awkward though when I became queen, then mother, and they still kept saying the same thing over and over again. I guess…"

She looked at Recluza firmly. "I wanted to hear something from people that was different from what was always the same thing I heard from everyone. It was still my mom… I wanted to know more about her, not just the same story over and over again, and I couldn't care if she made a mistake, I wanted to know more!"

She sighed. "Perhaps this is one of the reasons why I decided to visit the Spiderbite Kingdom."

Recluza's gaze became softer. "Heh… I guess that spectacle I gave earlier wasn't exactly what you were expecting from us."

"Actually… you were the first one to go against the majority back there," Festivia replied. "And the first one to actually say something different than 'Eclipsa is evil.' Which is exactly what I've always heard everywhere I went…"

"And what do you think about that?"

"I'm… not sure. I hope you can help with that."

Recluza smiled, then looked to the ceiling for a moment. Crescenta started commenting on the photos, and surprisingly enough, Dirhhennia leaned over to actually add her two cents every now and then. At some point, over some image of Jushtin and a very young Solaria, the both of them even laughed together—something that in the last few weeks Festivia would've believed almost impossible.

"So… how were they like, really?" she started.

"Do you mean your mother?" Recluza asked.

"My mother… and my grand-mother, and my great-uncle. I would like to know a bit about all of them."

Recluza's eyes became unfocused.

"I… sadly didn't get the chance to get to know Eclipsa as much as I'd have liked. I've managed to visit her only a total of four times when she was younger… and the war prevented me and Jushtin from visiting her for the rest of her time. And Solaria… she, uh… she was too far into the happenings to the monster war, to care about me that much. I guess that was for the better."

"You were married to Jushtin though," Festivia pointed out. "What was he like…?"

Recluza's lips quivered. "He was… when I first met him, I was convinced he was going to be a lazy butt of a man, and to be honest, it kinda turned out to be that to an extent," she chuckled. "But… but that didn't change the fact that he was far, far more respectful of me than I would've ever thought. I think that he actively trying to get to know me, to think about my interests, what I liked… is what led me to fall in actual love with him. And I like to think… that he also did love me."

Festivia smiled. "I'm sure he did."

"When I first heard about your ventures in Mewni, I just couldn't fathom how unlucky we were. Jushtin would've loved to meet you, Festivia. He would've loved you, period…"

Festivia stayed silent for a few moments, then decided to start with the direct questions. She wanted to know what had happened, not some unsure, confusing account of the events. "I was told he… left us due to a monster attack. Is that the case?"

"Y-yes," Recluza hiccupped. "He did… the monsters usually leave the Spiderbite kingdom alone, as we've tolerated each other more than in any other realm of Mewni in the past decades. But after what happened with Eclipsa, the tension has been high, and it didn't take much for an ambush to catch him off-guard, when the war during your reign broke out. Jushtin, he knew the risks, but… he was even older than me… and he…"

"I understand," Festivia quickly placed a hand on the old woman's shoulder. "No need to tell me more. I'm sorry he left you this way. I… I could've helped if I—"

"You were under siege by the time Jushtin died, Festivia," Recluza interrupted her. "And you were still a teenager back then… you couldn't do anything even if you wanted." She sniffed, then looked at her in the eyes. "The fact that you, you and your daughters are here means a lot for me. When I look at you… it's like I see him again, in a way. And I see Eclipsa again, somewhat, in Crescenta and Dirhhennia. It's like… they're still here."

"Well… as they say, it runs in the family," Festivia joked.

That didn't have the intended result as Recluza's expression hardened. She glanced at Crescenta and Dirhhennia, still immersed in their family album discovery trip, then regarded Festivia again.

"Festivia… I need to tell you something about your mother. This isn't just about people believing things wrong or building warped views of what actually happened to Eclipsa. It's about understanding that your mother was never a monster. She _never_ was."

Festivia nodded. "It reassures me to hear that… but what really happened to her? Why is everyone telling these stories about her?"

"That… I don't know much more than you probably do," Recluza confessed. "Me and my husband have tried hard to find out how the events exactly went on, but with a war-torn land between us and the Butterfly Castle and any dimensional scissors being useless due to the monsters' Tramorfidian disruption webs, we never managed to get much about her. But there is something we had that no one else had. We _knew_ Eclipsa. I knew her well enough to love her, and Jushtin basically babysat her when her own mother was busy fighting a war for years. Eclipsa and him were basically inseparable since she was younger. He knew her better than anyone else… even her mother."

Recluza's hands shook as she opened and closed them. "The very last time I had the chance to talk with her, Festivia, she told us something that we held, that I hold as a secret since then. It… it may not be something you'll like, but I think you deserve to know, and it'll solve at least some doubts. I'm… sick of hearing lies around me, and my niece deserves better."

Festivia wondered about what bombshell Recluza was preparing for her, and if she was really willing to get the truth from her. It took her a few moments to realize that Recluza wasn't the only one who was sick of what had been sputtered about her family for a long time.

She was sick of listening to people telling her that her mother was an evil monster. She needed to know if it was really true… of if there was more than that.

She glanced at her daughters, and both Crescenta and Dir were staring at Recluza, like students waiting for the Professor to reveal the genius part of their explanation.

No… no more secrets.

"Please, tell me," she said resolutely. "Tell us."

"Eclipsa… didn't love your father, Festivia," Recluza said immediately. "She confessed to me and Jushtin that she didn't love Shastacan, that she loved another, and she didn't know what to do. She was… honest. I can still remember her face, her tears from back then. She may consider lying to me, but she wouldn't lie to Jushtin, that I know for sure!"

Her tone became lower. "Jushtin didn't waste time and ran to Solaria basically on the spot. He wanted to talk to her, to convince her to reconsider the arranged marriage."

Recluza passed a hand over her face. "He failed. And that was the last time we saw of her."

Festivia took a few seconds to process what she'd just been told. Mom and dad… not loving each other?

It wasn't exactly something far-fetched all things considered. She had known plenty of royal couples in her time and she could see the ones who faked most of their behaviour, including those who had children. But the image she had pictured for years in her head of Shastacan and Eclipsa was something far different than that. It was the one of a couple of parents who were together in their misfortune, killed by a nightmarish beast that sometimes even appeared in her dreams when she was younger. And rarely, but surely… still did.

"Grandpa and Grandma were married, but they didn't like each other? Why were they married in the first place?" Dirhhennia asked.

"It was a family pact between Solaria, your great grandmother, and the Spiderbite family. Both me and Jushtin were kept in the dark about it until the very last moment, unfortunately, and by the time we knew we couldn't do much before we were forced to leave the Butterfly castle," Recluza explained.

"B-but that doesn't make sense. Why did grandma not love him, and love another? Did… did she actually love the monster that killed her?!" Crescenta exploded.

"Crescenta!"

Crescenta lowered her head. But Recluza nodded in sadness.

"You are right, dearie. I… I don't understand it well myself," Recluza said gravely. "She didn't tell us that her lover was a monster, but it makes sense in hindsight. Why she didn't' tell us his name, or who he was even vaguely… it all comes down to that. I-I can't fathom she was really in love with one of those… things. I thought at first that it was a monster plan all along, a trickery those beasts planned from the very beginning to hit the throne."

She shook her head. "I can still see her eyes, F-Festivia. No, no, she loved him with all her heart, of that I'm sure. It's heart breaking… to think that the-the one she loved so much, ended up b-betraying her. She didn't deserve him… or anything that happened to her."

Crescenta kept her silence after that. In fact, she soon started quietly sobbing to herself.

Festivia protective instinct took control as she went to sit on the bed beside her younger daughter and wrapped an arm around her. Looking for comfort, Crescenta buried her face in her vest and started crying a bit more loudly.

The queen tried her best to comfort her daughter, even if her own eyes were wet right now… after what she'd heard.

"She wasn't evil…" Festivia whispered. "She was never evil. She just… was in love."

Recluza nodded. "Jushtin never believed for one second that she actually planned to betray Mewni. In fact, we both concluded that she never betrayed her kingdom in any way—she left when she was desperate enough to run away, when the truth about… _him_ came out. But when he revealed the plans they really had, she must've refused to cooperate."

"So… nothing of what the Magic High Commission said about her was true, about her being evil. She was deceived. B-but… why lying?" Festivia questioned. "I can't understand why they would lie to me about this."

Recluza scoffed. "I can't think of a good reason either, but Eclipsa was disliked by the Commission since she was a little baby, and not just them… she had her enemies in Mewni. Jushtin mentioned that often. I know that the Commission members were basically your foster parents, Festivia… but they had a role in what happened back then as well. You should be wary of them."

"I'll… think about that," Festivia said. The fact was, the Magic High Commission weren't just the ones who raised her—they were the closest she ever had to a family, who helped her in times of need and who never left her alone. Lying to her all this time? They had to have a good enough reason to do that. They didn't lie about Globgor, for one… but their judgement of Eclipsa's choices was far more ruthless and critical than what was real according to Recluza.

Was that the end of it, or had they omitted even more information from her?

It was a hard thought, and she didn't think she could handle that right now. So, she decided to let the thought go for now.

"T-thank you, Recluza, for telling me this. It's… I feel like it was important for Dir and Crescenta to hear about this… and it was definitely important for me as well."

Recluza nodded. "You're still family to me, Festivia… even if I'm the only last remaining part of a side of that will be gone soon enough…"

"You're not gone yet though," Dirhhennia intervened. She had yet to join her sister and mother's embrace, but it didn't stop her from speaking with a somewhat harsh voice. "You're still here!"

Recluza smiled sadly at her. "Yes, I am…"

Dirhhennia realized she had somehow lost control, and recomposed herself quickly, scowling and crossing her arms while the album remained open in her lap. Festivia wondered why she was trying to hide her emotions that much, but didn't dare ask her to join them. By now, Crescenta had calmed down and at least was able to look at Recluza, though she was still gripping on Festivia's vest.

They stayed in silence for a few moments, before Recluza's face lit up. "I probably should not have bothered you this much. There's much I can tell you about Eclipsa and Jushtin that isn't so bad. Like most of the events narrated in that album I gave you! Did you know Jushtin could recite a long description for every single photo or drawing you can find in there?"

"…he could?" Crescenta timidly said.

"Yes, and I can do the same… after all the times he did that to me, I had to eventually learn everything," she let out a laugh, which managed to steal a smile from Crescenta. "So why don't you and your sister try to find a specific photo for me? There's this one where Eclipsa was around, uh… your age, Crescenta, and she was posing with Jushtin and Solaria. Think you can find that one? You can't miss it, it's the first one where it's just the three of them together."

Crescenta pushed herself away from Festivia, almost forcefully, and sniffed up, then proceeded to join Dirhhennia, who had already started surfing through the pages.

After that, Recluza simply regarded Festivia with a smile. "You have two beautiful daughters. I hope everyone has been shouting that in your ears all the time, because it's true."

Festivia laughed at the remark. "Kind of."

Recluza smiled weakly as she looked at them. "I do hope I'll be able to meet them at least one more time. I would love to see them grow up… even if just a little. I know the travel from Mewni to here takes a while."

"Well… I can always ask Hekapoo to lend me a pair of scissors," Festivia proposed. "And no more wars means no more issues with the scissors' mechanism due to the monsters, so we can visit anytime!"

Recluza's eyes widened, then she grinned. "Holy mother of Arachnids, I'm growing old and spent too much time being used to standard travel means…"

"Heh, it's never too late to make up. I'm sure you'd love to visit Mewni again every now and then. With the scissors, you can do that and with no travelling issues."

"Perhaps…" Recluza didn't elaborate further, but that gave Festivia an idea.

"You know what?" Festivia stood up. "Why don't you come to Mewni as soon as we go home?"

Recluza took a moment to understand. "Wait… do you mean just to visit?"

"No, I mean come _live_ in Mewni! There's plenty of space in the Butterfly castle for you, and you can spend all the time you want with Crescenta and Dirhhennia! They would love to have a great-great-auntie to keep them company, I'm sure!"

Recluza looked at her as if she'd just offered her the entire throne on the spot, but then shook her head. "Heh… that would be lovely. But I don't think that it would be a good decision."

Festivia's excitement deflated. "Why?"

"Look at me." She raised a hand and rotated it, showing the ragged veins. "I don't think I want to subject you and your daughters to the ramblings of an old lady. I would love to see you visit me again, but I think you don't need me to stick around. Besides… I was never truly welcome in Mewni."

"But today's different! There are no wars, and it's been years since what happened during my mom's reign. And…" Festivia's thoughts ran back to the episode at lunch. "You'd be welcome there, unlike _here,_ and I would make sure of that!"

"I know that I appear to be a thorn in my family's side sometimes, Festivia… but they're still my own family, despite them being a bunch of hard-headed simpletons sometimes," Recluza said. "I don't even live here, in the capital. I have a home a bit deeper into the Spiderbite forest, where I'm least likely to be subjected to their nonsense."

Festivia was somewhat disappointed by her refusal, but Recluza's smile didn't falter this time. "I'll be fine, Festivia. I have my own little estate thanks to my family's inheritance. I can't say I don't have a good life."

"Okay… but we'll still make sure to visit you frequently. And if you have _any_ issues, my door will always be open for you, Recluza."

"Heh… I know that."

"I think we found it," Dirhhennia interjected. Crescenta promptly offered the album, opened at the right page, and Festivia saw what image Recluza had described earlier.

Indeed, it depicted a very young Eclipsa, which was actually above the shoulders of both Solaria and Jushtin, who supported her over them. Eclipsa had her arms extended and her mouth open in a joyous smile, while Jushtin had a mischievous grin on his face. Even Solaria, who Festivia had heard enough about to at least be aware of her actions, was smiling brightly.

"I was the one who took this picture, actually," Recluza told them. "I still think it's one of the best ones yet in the entire album, because it was something so rare—to see the three of them smiling together this way, being happy and without a care for the world even if just for this moment, before the events brought them apart. In fact, that day we even had another misfit here—there's a reason Jushtin is smiling that way here. He planned something so incredible, I still can't believe it—"

Festivia eyes rested on the image for a few seconds before she glanced at her daughters. Dirhhennia had resumed frowning, but stayed in silence while looking at Recluza, while Crescenta had a large grin and rested her chin on her hands while she listened.

They looked much more at ease than they ever did in recent times…

In that moment, Festivia knew that she had to do whatever was in her power to make sure that the bad events that eventually brought her mom apart from her family, would never happen to her and her daughters.

…If there was something she could learn from mom, it was to not repeat the mistakes of the past.

**END**

**Author's Note:**

> If it wasn't clear by the writing, remember that the point of view here is strictly based on what the characters know. So, consider that when thinking about what is true or false. In any case, please don't hesitate to ask questions in comments in case there's anything you want to see explained further. I considered writing a longer AN about what I'm referring to here, but let's face it. Why explain everything now, when I can write additional stories to flesh things out later? :D
> 
> So yes, I do have a few more ideas for stories that generally star the queens of Mewni before Moon and Star. At first, it was supposed to stop at the first three stories I wrote that were focused around Solaria, Jushtin and Eclipsa, but these ideas just kept coming… so here I am. Hopefully I can manage to develop on a few of them and turn them into new one-shots like I did here—not sure if I'll be able to, but I like these characters and the world enough to try at least.


End file.
